Shirt hanger



July 24, 1962 E E, LILYA 3,045,881

SHIRT HANGER Filed July 15, 1959 INVENTO'R. EPIC E. L/L Y4 ATTaQA/EXUnited States Patent Q 3,045,881 SHIRT HANGER Eric E. Lilya, 1338Cheshire St., Cheshire, Conn. Filed July 13, 1959, Ser. No. 826,680 3Claims. (Cl. 223-92) This invention relates to clothes hangers and isdirected more particularly to an improved shirt hanger.

The principal object of this invention is to provide an improved shirthanger that will hang a mans shirt in such a way as to prevent wrinklesfrom forming in the collar, shoulders and body of the shirt.

Another object of this invention is to provide a shirt hanger of theabove nature which will be form-fitted to the neck and shoulders of ashirt to allow it to dry and hang thereon without wrinkling and therebyeliminate the need of ironing.

A more particular object of this invention is to provide a shirt hangerof the character described which has formfitting shoulder portions and acentral cylindrical neck portion adapted to fit the shirt collar, whichneck portion is resiliently adjustable to allow snug fitting withinbuttoned shirt collars of various sizes to prevent wrinkling.

Still another object is to provide a shirt hanger of the above naturewhich will be simple in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, easyto manipulate and very efficient and durable in use.

Other objects, features and advantages of this invention will beapparent from the following description when read with reference to theaccompanying drawing, wherein like reference numerals denotecorresponding parts throughout the several views.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a shirt hanger embodying theinvention, shown fitted in a shirt,

FIG. 2 is a top view of the shirt hanger, shown separa-tely,

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view thereof,

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view thereof, and

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the collar adjusting wedge, shownseparately, on a larger scale.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, this improved shirt hanger,designated generally by the numeral 10, comprises a central, upstanding,circular neck portion 11, and a pair of opposed, outwardly-extendingshoulder portions 12, 12, said hanger preferably being integrally moldedof a light weight synthetic plastic material. The neck portion 11 ismade of hollow, annular shape to provide a central opening 13, and isdownwardly inclined from back to front, as best illustrated in FIG. 4.As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the neck portion 11 is formed with an opening14 in the front of the hanger, and the ends of said neck portiondefining said opening have wedge-shaped grooves as indicated at 15. Thewedge-shaped ends of the neck portion 11, moreover, are inwardlyinclined, so that the opening 14 thereof is larger at the top than atthe bottom.

As a means for spreading the ends 15 of the neck portion 11 to adapt thehanger to snugly fit shirt collars of various sizes, a wedge member 16is provided (see FIG. 5), having side portions 17, 17 which taperinwardly from top to bottom and which are formed with V-shaped ribs 18adapted to fit the V-grooves 15 of the neck portion 11.

As best illustrated in FIG. 2, the rear sections of the shoulderportions 12 curve outwardly around the rear of the neck portion 11, asindicated at 19, to follow generally the vertical contour of the humanback and shoulders. The shoulder portions also curve downwardly gentlyfrom back to front, as indicated at 20, and are rounded at their outerends as indicated at 21.

Removable hook means is provided for supporting the hanger on a closetrod or the like. To this end, the neck 3,045,881 Patented July 24, 1962portion 11 of the hanger is provided with a pair of laterally opposedsmall cylindrical recesses 22, 22 adapted to receive the resilient,outwardly-projecting end portions of a V-shaped wire support member 23,the apex of which has secured thereto an upstanding wire rod 24. Asmall, downwardly-extending hook 25 can also be secured at the apex ofthe support member 23 for convenience in hanging an undershirt, belt orother article of clothing.

Operation In use, a shirt S will be applied over the hanger 10 asillustrated in FIG. 1, and buttoned at the collar, after which the wedgemember 16 will be forced downwardly within the opening 14 in the neckportion 13 of the hanger to spread it sufficiently to snugly fit withinthe shirt collar, thereby preventing wrinkling of the shirt until readyfor use. The natural shape of the shoulder portions 12, as describedabove, will allow the shirt to drape downwardly from the hanger, asillustrated in FIG. 1, without wrinkling, so that the shirt will be keptwrinkle-free while not being worn. Moreover, if a shirt having wrinkles,or a damp wash and dry shirt is fitted upon and left on the hanger for asuflicient length of time, such wrinkles will disappear.

While the present invention has been disclosed for use as a hanger forshirts, it will be understood that it will also be useful in suspendingcoats or dresses within the spirit and scope thereof.

While there has been disclosed in this specification one form in whichthe invention may be embodied, it is to be understood that this form isshown for the purpose of illustration only, and that the invention isnot limited to the specific disclosure, but may be modified and embodiedin various other equivalent forms without departing from its spirit. Inshort, the invention includes all the modifications and embodimentscoming within the scope of the following claims.

Having thus fully described the invention, what is claimed as new andfor which it is desired to secure Letters Patent is:

l. A shirt hanger comprising in combination an annular split neckportion, a pair of opposed side shoulder portions, integral with andextending outwardly from the opposite sides of said neck portion, theupper end of said neck portion being downwardly inclined from back tofront to follow the neck line of a shirt collar, and means to expandsaid annular neck portion to snugly fit within a collar of a shirtbuttoned on the hanger, the neck portion of said hanger beingconstructed of resilient material so that it will expand against saidcollar throughout the periphery thereof, so as to permit said neckportion to fit various sizes of shirt collars, the shoulder portions ofsaid hanger being shaped to curve gently around the back of said neckportion from end to end to follow the natural curvature of the humanback.

2. In a hanger for mens shirts, the combination comprising an annularresilient split neck portion, a pair of opposed shoulder portionsextending laterally from opposite sides of said neck portion and formedintegrally therewith, the upper section of said neck portion beingdownwardly inclined from back to front to follow the neck line of ashirt collar, means to expand said annular neck portion to snugly fitwithin a shirt collar buttoned on said hanger, and means connected tothe rear of said neck portion for suspending said hanger upon a closetrod or other support.

3. In a hanger for a shirt, the combination comprising a split resilientannular neck portion having a wedge shaped front opening, a pair ofopposed shoulder portions extending laterally from opposite sides ofsaid neck portion and integral therewith, the upper end of said neckpor- References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTSKeederle Sept. 1, 1908 Duggan Sept. 12, 1950 Miller Mar. 13, 1956FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain Jan. 17, 1949

